


Blue Moon

by Athena_Silverwolf



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Canonical Character Death, Ensemble Cast, F/M, Family, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Multi, Pack Dynamics, Pack Family, Protective Derek, Protective Scott, Protectiveness
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-21
Updated: 2017-03-09
Packaged: 2018-09-10 22:16:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8941522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Athena_Silverwolf/pseuds/Athena_Silverwolf
Summary: Ami McCall has seen the red eyes before. She knows what they mean, but she never expected her adoptive brother Scott to be bitten. Now lost family, old secrets, and new enemies are rising. Ami must find the balance of her place in the middle, and suddenly she's more in need of her brother than ever before. Luckily, there's 2 whole new levels of big bad brother. S1E1-S3E10 completed





	1. Wolf Moon

**Author's Note:**

> So, here’s another Scott has a sister fic, but I’m hoping everyone likes it. I’m making Ami Scott’s adopted sister, but they’re the same age. Slight Derek/OC, but it's not romantic, since Derek is what, six years older than Scott and Stiles? 
> 
> Disclaimer: Clearly I do not own Teen Wolf, or I wouldn’t be posting on here. Ami is mine, please don’t copy.

As I climbed out of the shower, I could hear my brother’s music playing next door. Before I hurried into my room to dress, I knocked on the second door to Scott’s room and heard the music pause. I pulled on a pair of Scott’s old sweats and a Beacon Hills tank top I’d stolen from Danny before blow drying my long brown hair. Sitting in front of my vanity table, I heard boards creaking. Joining Scott in the hall, I heard it again, coming from the front porch. “Stay here,” he whispered, zipping up a sweatshirt and grabbing Melissa’s old baseball bat from when Mr. McCall had still been around. 

A moment later, I heard him yelling, and a voice that sounded like Stiles crying out “Whoa!” Laughing, I ran down the stairs and peeked around the doorframe, seeing my brother’s best friend hanging upside from the porch roof. 

“Stiles, what the hell are you doing?” Scott demanded, lowering the bat. 

“You weren’t answering your phone!” Stiles squeaked. “And neither were you!” he said, turning to me. “Why do you have a bat?” he asked. 

Scott looked at the bat and tried to explain, “I thought you were a predator.”

“A predator?” Stiles scoffed.

“It’s nothing, Sti,” I told him, taking it from Scott and putting it inside the door.

“Look, I know it’s late, but you gotta hear this. I saw my dad leave twenty minutes ago. Dispatch called, they’re bringing in every officer in the Beacon Department and even the State Police,” Stiles said, still hanging upside down.

“For what?” Scott clearly didn’t understand why Stiles was so excited about this, and honestly, neither did I. I snuggled into Scott’s side, slipping under his arm, and he absently wrapped me in a hug as a chilly breeze blew around us.

“Two joggers found a body in the woods,” Stiles told us, jumping down to the lawn.

“A dead body?” Scott asked, leaning onto the railing. I giggled when Stiles popped back up, reaching up onto the railing.

“No, a body of water. Yes, dumbass, a dead body,” Stiles replied, making me laugh quietly.

“What?” Scott asked, glancing down at me.

“That was a stupid question,” I murmured, tilting my head to look up at him. I barely came up to his shoulder. Stiles climbed up onto the porch, and I reached up to brush a leaf out of his hair. He bowed, lowering himself to my height, and then straightened as I stepped back.

“You mean like murdered?” Scott questioned him.

”Nobody knows yet, just that it was girl, probably in her twenties,” Stiles explained.

“Wait, hold on. If the police found the body, what are they looking for?” Scott realized.

I knew this was trouble when Stiles said, “That’s the best part.” I shook my head, trying to tell him to stop, but he continued, “They only found half.”

“Oh, ew,” I gasped, stepping back, my eyes going wide.

“We’re going,” Stiles declared.

“No, I’m most definitely not,” I protested. “No, no, no,” I gasped, and then realized it was falling on deaf ears as Stiles lifted my tiny form over his shoulder and tossed me in the back sheet of his Jeep. “Stiles, I don’t even have shoes or a sweatshirt!” I yelped, but Scott had already climbed into the passenger seat. Stiles started the car, effectively trapping me in the backseat. “No, I don’t want to help you find a dead body!” I cried, uselessly.

Within minutes we had pulled up to the reserve. “We’re seriously doing this?” Scott demanded, slamming the car door.

“You’re the one always bitching that nothing ever happens in this town,” Stiles reminded him, leading the way.

“Not without shoes, we’re not!” I yelled as they started walking away.

“There’s a sweatshirt back there, but you might have to go barefoot,” Stiles told me, handing a flashlight over. Grumbling about idiot teenage boys, I pulled Stiles’ lacrosse sweatshirt over Danny’s tank top and jumped down into the leaves. Jogging after them as they headed into the woods, I realized just how dark it was here.

“I was trying to get a good night’s sleep before practice tomorrow,” Scott protested, hesitating at the edge of the trees. Then he realized that Stiles had the flashlight and hurried after his friend.

“Right, cause sitting on the bench is such a grueling effort,” Stiles scoffed at the fate the boys had suffered last year.

“No, because, I’m playing this year. In fact I’m making first line,” Scott informed him. I rolled my eyes, but I knew how hard my brother had been training over the summer to be good.

“Hey, that’s the spirit. Everyone should have a dream, even if a pathetically unrealistic one,” Stiles replied. It seemed even the creepiness of the dark woods couldn’t shake him of his trademark sarcasm.

“Just out of curiosity, which half of the body are we looking for?” Scott asked.

I groaned when Stiles paused. “Huh. I didn’t even think about that,” he replied easily, as if it was no big deal.

“And, uh, what if whoever killed the body is still out here?” Scott pressed, looking up at the rain started to fall.

“Also something I didn’t think about,” Stiles admitted.

“Oh, my god, Stiles! What have you gotten us into?” I gasped, wincing as I stepped on a branch. As Stiles started up the hill, I heard Scott wheezing, and I sighed. And realized I was going to have to climb the hill barefoot. “Does this get any worse?” I groaned to myself, knowing my feet were going to be cut, bloody, and bruised when we got home.

“It’s comforting to know you planned this with your usual attention to detail,” Scott said. He paused, leaning against a tree as he dug in his pocket, and wheezed, “Maybe the severe asthmatic should be the one holding the flashlight.” As I passed him, I shoved my flashlight into his hand, and followed after Stiles, picking my way through the leaves with a wince pretty much every step. The leaves were cold and wet, and I seemed to hit every fallen branch and rock in my path.

Stiles flopped onto the ground at the top of the hill, and I fell on top of him. He barely even reacted, and I cursed not only my small stature but slim figure too. I barely weighed a hundred pounds fully dressed. Scanning the trees as Scott fell beside us; I realized why Stiles had stopped. A line of flashlights signaled to us that the police were headed this way, and I could hear the dogs barking too. Stiles scrambled up, taking me with him as I clung to his back, only to call, “Come on!” to Scott.

Slipping back onto the wet leaves, I reached for Scott as he called, “Stiles wait up!” He took my offered hand, and we tried to run after our friend, but my bare feet and Scott’s asthma were not making it easy. “Stiles!” I called, yelping when my foot caught a rock. I went down, forcing Scott to stop, and he called Stiles one more time.

If I’d been looking, I would have seen Stiles slow down to a walk and turn back to us, or I would have seen the officer behind him. Instead, the dog’s bark and the flashlight beam made me jump, and I heard Stiles yell out as he went down on the wet leaves. “Stay right there!” the officer ordered, and I saw Scott duck behind a tree.

Briefly I wondered why I was hiding, because revealing myself meant I could go home and get out of the rain. But Scott was hiding, and I wasn’t leaving him alone out here. I hunched down behind the rock I’d tripped over when I heard Sheriff Stilinski’s gruff, “Hang on, hang on! This little delinquent belongs to me.”

I couldn’t hear Stiles’ response, but I knew it would be stupid and eye-roll worthy. They must have talked for a minute before the Sheriff raised his flashlight to scan the darkness around him. “Scott, Ami, you out there? Scott? Ami?” he called. Then the flashlight went down and Scott shuffled over to me. He handed me the flashlight and took my hand, lifting Stiles’ hood over my hair.

“Scotty, I don’t like this,” I whispered when the trees started creaking.

“It’ll be ok, Ami,” he murmured, leading on, though considerably more slowly than Stiles had. When he paused in the little clearing, I shivered, the mist turning the already dark and stormy night into plain creepy. He shook his inhaler, raising it to his mouth, when the deer burst out of the trees.

I screamed, falling to the ground as I tried to scramble away, and Scott went down with a yell behind me. One deer fell in its panic, flailing as it raced back to its feet, and one huge hoof grazed my side, throwing me into Scott. Then they were gone and the woods were still again. “God,” he said, getting to his feet. He lifted me up, and then took out his phone.

“What are you looking for?” I asked when he started scanning the leaves.

“My inhaler,” he replied. I groaned, knowing it would cost us a lot to replace one, then moved away to shine my flashlight on the wet leaves. I had moved closer to him, more afraid of the darkness than I thought when his phone light ran over something that made him go back. When I saw the girl’s face, I screamed. Realizing this was the body, Scott jerked back with a yell, and he tumbled down the hill we’d struggled to climb earlier. I saw his phone fly out of his hand and retrieved it from the leaves before starting down the hill. I was too eager to get away from the body, and slipped, sliding down to the big tree where Scott had stopped before.

“Scott?” I called, and saw him jump over a fallen tree. He had only taken two steps when he stopped. “Scott, come on,” I pleaded, hating how afraid I sounded. He turned to look behind him, and we both saw the dark, bulky form of the animal. It leaped, landed on top of my brother as he turned away, and I gasped, ducking behind the tree. I had nowhere to run, so I shut off the flashlight as I heard my brother’s pained cry. Pulling the hood further down over my head, I willed myself into a tiny ball, terrified and shaking, tears spilling over my cheeks.

Something scrambled through the leaves, heading away from me, and I realized it was my brother. But I couldn’t stop the whimper when I realized that meant I was alone, with no phone, with the beast that had just attacked my brother. I heard something moving in the leaves, and heard heavy panting nearby.

I shrunk down, and the movement was probably my mistake, because then I went flying, the beast looming over me when I landed. “Open your eyes,” a raspy voice crooned, but I had never shut them. Sharp claws dug into my chin, forcing me to turn and face the beast holding me. I was met first by sharp fangs and horrible breath that made me gag before I lifted my eyes to its face. Then wished I hadn’t.

Glowing red eyes bored into my terrified blue ones and I knew no matter what I did, they were going to be burned into my memory for a long time. “Please, don’t kill me,” I begged, and it released my chin.

“I don’t want to kill you. You are perfect for the bite,” it replied, but I was too terrified to understand. I shut my eyes and leaned away when it lowered its head to my face, and whimpered when it sniffed at my hair. “But not yet, my pretty little pup,” it added, and then it was gone. Curling into a ball, I sobbed, my fear completely overwhelming me as I lay there.

“Get up,” a deep voice ordered me, and I jerked away from the hand on my shoulder with a scream. I hadn’t even heard anyone coming.

“Oh my god, please don’t kill me,” I begged, scrambling to get away.

“I’m not going to hurt you. What are you doing out here?” the man asked, stopping me easily.

“My friend…police…found a body…brother…we found it…monster…red eyes,” I tried to speak, but everything came out jumbled and confusing and I couldn’t slow down.

“Easy now. Try again. Just say yes or no, ok?” he asked. I nodded, pulling my legs up to my chin. “Did the police find a body?” he asked.

“Yes,” I whispered.

“Were you out looking for it with your friend?” he guessed.

“Stiles. His name is Stiles. His dad is the Sheriff,” I replied.

“You and your brother found the body out here when you were looking?” he went on, taking my hand in his. He was warm, though his hands were rough and nearly twice the size of mine.

“Half of a girl,” I told him, closing my eyes against the images that flooded my head.

“Where did you find her?” he reached over to take my other hand now, and I realized how cold and very vulnerable I was.

“Up there, on top of the hill,” my tears were falling again now, and he raised one hand to wipe them away.

“You’re okay, I’ve got you,” he told me, releasing me, a warm weight settled around my shoulders, and I looked down to see a leather jacket. “Come on, up,” he ordered, lifting me easily. He carried me with little effort all the way to the edge of the woods, where he set me down on the road. “Wait,” he told me, holding my arm. An SUV zoomed past, and around the bend ahead of us, I heard a yell and the screech of brakes.

“Scott!” I cried, recognizing the yell. “It’s my brother,” I gasped, whirling to the man holding me. I finally got a good look at his face, seeing the dark hair cut short and spiked in the front. He had a sharp jaw and high cheek bones, but the only accurate word for his appearance was strong.

“Go,” he told me, releasing me.

“Take your jacket back,” I realized, shrugging it off when he went to step away. I handed it over and said, “Thank you. And thank you for finding me.” He nodded, and by the time I realized I didn’t know his name, he was gone. I took off down the road, my bare feet slapping the wet pavement, and rounded the bend to find my brother standing in the middle of the road.

“Scott!” I cried, leaping into his arms.

He caught me, stumbling, and pressed his face into my dripping hair. “Oh, thank God,” he murmured. We both jerked, looking up instantly when the howl drifted through the darkness, and I grabbed Scott’s hand. He led me down the road, and soon we were stumbling into the house. Dripping and soaked to the skin, we both ended up in another shower, and then I had to help Scott bandage the perfectly shaped bite in his side. But when it came down to finally going to sleep, I ended up crawling into Scott’s bed with him, the red eyes still burned inside my head.

My feet ached after last night and then this morning’s walk to school, so when Danny found me, I was seated on one of the benches out front. He stood over me with a grin, offering his hand. “Hey, Pixie,” he teased. “Here,” he added, handing over several pieces of paper and a coffee cup.  
“Hi, Danny,” I greeted him tiredly, getting to my feet. I took the papers, glancing down to see that they were my schedule, and inhaled the steam from the drink. “Caramel frappuccino?” I guessed.

“With skim milk,” he confirmed. I sighed gratefully and stood to hug him properly.

I took his hand as one of his lacrosse buddies yelled, “Yo, Jackson, let’s go, bro!”

A minute later, Danny and I fell in behind Jackson as he strode into school, the King of his castle on the hill. “Hi, Jackson,” I murmured.

“Hey, McCall,” he nodded to me, scanning the hallways for a certain red-head. “Have you seen-” he started, but I pointed my thumb over my shoulder. “Thanks Pixie,” he smirked down at me, and I nodded with little energy as he headed for Lydia.

“Why are you so tired?” Danny asked, standing next to me as I opened my locker. He held my coffee as I put up my little white board, pencil holder, mirror, and the pictures I’d decided to put up this year. The binders and folders I could still use from last year went in, organized quickly by color. I was left with a single notebook and folder in my bag, along with my small makeup kit and wallet.

“Stiles and Scott kept me up till midnight and then I had a really bad nightmare, so I got pretty much no sleep,” I explained quietly. “What class do you have first?” I asked, opening my schedule. He didn’t answer, because he didn’t have to. He’d already highlighted the classes I had with him on my schedule. Grinning up at him, I slipped my arm through his and let him lead me to our French class. I ended up seated behind him and surrounded by girls giggling at Jackson.

Lydia gave them one look, and they shut up instantly, and I sighed in relief. “Ami, sit up here,” said red-head ordered. I picked up my bag and moved up to sit in front of Danny as she scanned my outfit. “I need to take you shopping, don’t I?” she asked.

“Lydia, you know I can’t afford new clothes very often,” I replied softly.

“Same deal as last year, sweetie; I buy you clothes, you let me tell you how to wear them,” she shrugged.

“Deal,” I agreed, flipping my hair over my shoulder as I turned away from the creepy eyes of one of the boys sitting on Jackson’s other side. Lydia laughed, and Danny glared at the boy. Danny might be gay, but I was still off-limits to the other guys. “Are you going to practice today, Lydia?” I asked my voice still quiet. Danny said that he’d never heard me any louder than quiet, and of course, everyone agreed.

“Of course,” she replied, smiling at Jackson. He nodded a smug smile on his face.

“Are you going?” Danny asked me, looking up at me to where I was perched on my desk.

“Someone has to cheer you on,” I teased, “but, Stiles is my ride to work afterwards so I have to stick around.” As I met his eyes, another face came unbidden to mind. One with high cheekbones and a sharp jaw line and steely eyes. I shook my head but couldn’t banish the memory of my mysterious rescuer from my head. Blinking rapidly, I took my seat when the teacher came in.

“You okay?” Danny asked, leaning forward to whisper in my ear. I nodded, afraid that if I told Danny about the mystery man, I’d end up telling him about the red eyes still lingering in the back of my mind.

The rest of the day passed easily, with lectures on the classroom rules and the courses. I had a folder full of paperwork, but I knew I’d end up forging my mom’s signature so I didn’t have to bother her at work. At the end of the day, I opened my locker to find my whiteboard written on. “Keep your wings up, Pixie, we love you,” it said. It was signed by Danny, Lydia, and Jackson. A second message told me there was a hug waiting from Scott and Stiles.

Smiling, I headed for the lacrosse field, my coat pulled close against the wind. I was glad I’d stuck over a dozen bobby pins into my hair to hold my knit beret on, because the wind would have taken it otherwise. It was easy to find Lydia and the new girl, Allison I thought her name was, sitting on the bleachers.

“Who is that?” Allison asked.

“Him? I’m not sure who he is,” Lydia asked.

“That’s my brother, Scott. Lyd, you’ve met him,” I told them softly.

Lydia shrugged and asked, “Why?” to Allison.

“He’s in my English class,” the brunette told us. She smiled shyly, and I got it instantly. Scott had totally made some kind of impression; good or not, I had yet to know. Thanks to my over sensitive hearing, I winced when the coach blew the whistle, but my reaction was nothing compared to Scott’s.

My brother doubled over, clutching at his head, and I watched him, confused. The first player in line, Jason I thought, launched a throw, and it slammed straight into Scott’s facemask. He went down on his back, shaking his head. Even Coach laughed, and I glared daggers into his back. “Hey way to catch with your face, McCall!” Jackson called. I narrowed my eyes at Jackson, and prepared to give him a thorough scolding tomorrow.

Scott sighed, and on the bench in front of me, Stiles groaned, dropping his head. Then Scott got up, and I saw him lower his head and set his shoulders in determination. Then Brian went up, and he threw fast. I did a double take when I saw that Scott was staring at his cross. The whole line of players leaned around the kid in front of them to look at Scott, and even Stiles jumped in surprise. “Go, Scott!” I cheered. Through his mask, he flashed me a grin, and I offered a thumb up. Maybe his training was paying off.

When he caught the next one at his feet, Stiles cheered, and I let out a whistle. Stiles finally turned around to me after the fourth catch, and I laughed at the huge grin spreading across his face. “He seems like he’s pretty good,” Allison mused.

“Yeah, very good,” Lydia replied, and I raised an eyebrow at her tone.

“What can I say, he’s my brother,” I bragged softly. Lydia laughed and Allison offered a smile.

Then Jackson slammed his cross stick into Corey’s chest, stopping him fast. The captain lowered his head, and I was suddenly looking at two wolves circling each other. I blinked, and Jackson was charging the net, the whole crowd going quiet with baited breath. Jackson launched the ball t the net, and Scott lunged. Stiles shot up with a crazy cheer and a strange arm motion as I jumped to my feet, cheering. Lydia cheered beside me, and the crowd clapped, impressed. I glanced over at Lydia in time to see her smirk smugly at Jackson. I sighed, knowing Jackson had been caught leering over some new hottie. “That is my friend!” Stiles declared proudly.

“Yeah, Scott!” I called, watching him as he threw the ball with perfect aim back at the assistant coach who’d blown the whistle.

The boys ran through a few more shooting drills after that, but none of them scored on Scott. Not even Jackson. After the tryout, I waited at Danny’s car, and he was quick to join me. He’d showered and changed back into his school clothes, and I was quick to notice the curious glances he kept throwing over my shoulder. “Your brother got good,” he told me.

“He worked hard for it,” I replied, hugging him quickly.

“Ami,” he called as I started away, “His Majesty doesn’t like the new threat.”

“I know,” I called over my shoulder, hurrying over to Stiles’ Jeep. But right now, Jackson’s ego was the least of my problems.

After school we piled into the Jeep and I learned I’d been left out of the plan to go find Scott’s inhaler when we pulled up at the reserve. “Guys, I can’t go in there dressed like this,” I protested, gesturing to my skirt and tights.

“At least you have shoes on this time,” Stiles said.

“And whose fault was that?” I snapped, following him into the trees with a sigh. “Scott, how did you do that today?” I asked. They jumped down through a stream and I was forced to pick my way across a tree that had fallen from one bank to the other.

“I don’t know what it was. It was like I had the time in the world to catch the ball. And that’s not the only weird thing,” I heard Scott say. I jogged after them, holding my skirt down, and heard him add, “I can hear things I shouldn’t be able to hear; smell things.”

“Smell things? Like what?” Stiles asked.

“Like the mint mojito gum in your pocket,” my brother told him.

“I don’t even have any mint mojito…” Stiles protested, reaching into his pocket. I caught them just in time to see him pull out a piece of green gum. I rolled my eyes at Scott as he held out his arms in a told you so expression. “So, all this started with a bite?” Stiles’ voice instantly made me suspicious, and I turned to him warily, following Scott further into the woods.

“What if it’s like an infection? Like, my body’s flooding with adrenaline before I go into shock or something,” Scott fretted.

“You know, I actually think I’ve heard of this. It’s a specific kind of infection,” Stiles started. Instantly I coughed, choking on surprise, and went ahead as Scott stopped to face his friend. I forced a laugh when I heard Stiles say, “I know! You’re a werewolf!” They followed along behind me, Stiles still teasing Scott until I stopped in what looked like the clearing where the deer had kicked me.

I bent over, holding the back of my skirt down, rifling through the leaves as Scott crouched down where I thought he’d fallen. Then I looked up and my heart stopped. Standing less than three feet in front of me was a man in black jeans, a black shirt, and a black leather jacket. But when I looked up further, and saw his face, I took a step back in disbelief and slipped. I fell, throwing my hands out behind me to catch myself, but the very familiar man moved, without sound, catching me easily and setting me on my feet. “At least you have shoes on this time,” he murmured in my ear before moving closer to Scott and Stiles. Then I realized that he’d pressed something cold and round into my hand. I looked down to see the flashlight I’d dropped when I’d been attacked.

I hurried toward my brother, and Stiles looked up. He spotted the man, and whacked Scott. My brother got his feet as I went to him, and I fit myself neatly between them. “What are you doing here?” the man asked walking closer. I ignored the icy, bitter look he directed at the protective hand Stiles had on my arm. When none of us replied, he said, “Huh? This is private property.”

“Uh sorry man, we didn’t know,” Stiles said. But he clearly knew.

“Yeah, we were just looking for something, but,” Scott told him. The man, who I knew to be twenty-four, jerked his chin, an eyebrow going up. “Uh, forget it, uh,” Scott said. And then something white flew through the air and Scott was holding his inhaler.

Starting to turn away, the guy spared me once last look, and I swallowed. It had been this dark, intimidating guy who’d found me? He didn’t look anything like I remembered. This surly kid had wiped my tears away? This guy didn’t look anything like the type to be gentle. He moved his shoulders, drawing my eyes to his jacket, and I knew instantly that it was the same one I’d worn last night.

“Alright, come on man, I gotta get to work,” Scott said, stepping forward.

“Dude,” Stiles hit Scott in the chest, stopping him, “That was Derek Hale.” But Scott showed no signs of knowing the name, though I recognized it with a pang in my chest. “You remember, right? He’s only like a few years older than us,” Stiles said.

“Remember what?” Scott asked.

“His family? They all burned to death in a fire like ten years ago,” Stiles said, and then I remembered.

“It was six years, not ten. I knew the whole family before you guys adopted me,” I told him.

“I wonder what he’s doing back,” Scott mused. Stiles scoffed, taking my hand to lead me back out of the woods. He helped me back into the Jeep, and I handed him the flashlight. We dropped Scott off at the clinic before Stiles headed across town. He left me at the front door to the book store where I worked after making me promise to pick up a few books on myths and legends.

When the storm rolled in, I was curled up on the old plush couch with my boss’s big Border Collie and a cup of hot chocolate. Stiles’ books on myths and legends were stacked up on the floor next to me. Though technically a store, people were welcome to come in and sit for as long as they liked to read. Mr. Roberts, my boss, had turned half the first floor into a reading lounge in front of the fireplace. Everyone in town called this place “the Den,” since everyone felt at home here.

After the first peal of thunder made me jump a foot in the air, I decided to switch to a calmer book, and picked up Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver. Of course, the main character had to remind me of Scott.

When the grandfather clock told me it was ten o’clock, I gathered Stiles’ books into my bag and left my books on the side table. Mr. Roberts would leave them for me for tomorrow. I put Bandit in his crate, but left the door open. He was the security system for the store, since Mr. Roberts only had one camera on the front door. Locking the door to the basement storeroom, I walked through the store, turning off all the lights. After I pulled the blinds down, I slipped out the front door and locked it behind me. Plugging in my earphones, I shoved my iPod in my pocket and pulled my hood up. The rain was still coming down, and I knew I'd be cold and dripping by the time I reached the hospital. I had to walk almost a mile across town so Mom could give me a ride home after her shift.

In the dark, with thunder booming overhead, I tried to ignore the fact that I was very much alone. But I couldn't. The red eyes seemed to watch me from the darkness across the road. When the wind howled around me, I could hear the raspy laughter. I was shaking and terrified, on the verge of tears, by the time I'd gone just one block. When I looked back over my shoulder my heart stopped. Even from several doors down, I could hear Bandit barking insanely from the shop.

But the monster turned its head towards the shop and I heard the growl over the storm. Bandit went quiet instantly, and then those red eyes turned towards me.

"Oh, my god, no, please no!" I gasped, taking off. My bag thumped against my side, but I barely felt it over the frantic pounding of my heart. All common sense seemed to leave me as I raced, hopelessly, for the hospital. I darted across the road, barely missing falling in a huge puddle. In front of me was the bar and grill, but I didn't even think to run in there. 

Then the door was flung open and I slammed straight into a very solid wall. I yelped and would have fallen flat on my face if two iron arms hasn't locked around my waist and held me up. "Thanks," I gasped, my voice cracking with my fear as I got my feet back under me. And I looked up into the steely green eyes of Derek Hale.

"We seem to be making a habit of this," he said. Had it been anyone else, the words would have sounded teasing, but not from Derek. His face was drawn, his eyes searching the darkness behind me. "Come on, I'll take you home," he decided, releasing me. Without waiting for my response, he tucked me under one arm, pulling me close, and led me towards a black Camaro parked on the street. Had I not been so scared of the monster in the darkness, I probably would have questioned the wiseness of getting in the car with him. He shut the door behind me, and I fumbled for the buckle, my hands shaking as I pulled it across me. He slid into the driver's seat, and took the buckle from me. "You're safe now," he told me softly. Then he pulled out, heading across town.

I shook my head, swallowing as I tried desperately to talk. "He's still out there," I managed to whisper.

"Who?" Derek asked.

"Whatever bit my brother last night in the woods? I saw it. He spoke to me. Then he was there, just now, just as I was leaving work!" I gasped out. Then another thought occurred to me. "My god, he knows where I work!" I sobbed, burying my face in my hands. My tears came now, and I found I couldn't stop them.

Instantly, Derek pulled over, parked, and pulled me into his arms. "I've got you. No one will hurt you," he promised.

"This isn't a school yard bully, Derek. You can't protect me from this like you did when Cora and I were little," I cried.

"It'll be okay, Ami," he soothed me, but he let me cry into his chest anyway. The Derek I’d seen this morning would have just kept driving and let me cry on my own, but I figured this was the Derek I remembered.

When I finally pulled away, he took my hand in his. He still didn't smile, but as he pulled back onto the street, I realized how warm his hand was. "It really was you last night, wasn't it?" I asked softly.

"I told you I'd look out for you. Those two fools you hang out with couldn't have kept you safe. Ami, you know what the monster is. You know what I am," he reminded me.

"I thought you never coming home. And I never believed you," I admitted. "I never thought one of you could go so bad," I explained, "your mom was such a good Alpha. I didn't think it was possible to give in to the animal so completely."

"Now you know. But you have to stay out of the woods. He bit Scott last night, didn't he?" Derek sighed.

"Yeah. Is Scott going to become one of you?" I asked.

"Check tonight and see if he healed. That'll be your answer," he replied.

"You'll help him right? You can't make him go through this on his own," I pleaded.

"I'll do what I can. I don't know how it works for a bitten wolf. I've never had to deal with one," he warned me.

"It's all we have," I sighed, nodding. Then another thought occurred to me. "Derek, if you're back, is Laura home too?" I asked.

Instantly, his hand tightened around mine, and I bit my lip to keep from wincing. "Laura...Ami, Laura is the girl they found last night," he sighed.

"What? No. No, how?" I gasped.

"I don't know. Look, just do me one thing," he told me as we pulled up to my house. I unbuckled, and he let my hand go. "Meet me Friday," he requested.

"How will I find you?" I asked, opening the door.

"You'll remember," he finally smirked, and I nodded. I closed the door and bowed my head against the rain as I ran to the front door. Fishing for my keys in my bag, I pulled them out only to fumble them trying to fit the key into the lock. But Derek was there as I leaned over to get them. He unlocked the door easily and handed me back the keys. "You're safe, Pixie. I won't let anyone hurt you," he promised, kissing my forehead. Then he was gone, and his car was started.

"I'm glad you're home, Derek," I murmured into the storm before I closed the front door behind me.

When I walked into school the next day in tight jeans, a blue button-down blouse, heeled boots, and one of Lydia's jackets, I looked more confident than I felt. I'd woken not to the storm but Scott returning to the house, soaking wet and in boxers. And I'd seen not only the lack of a wound but the shadowy shape at the edge of the woods.

I left the books in Stiles’ locker, along with his washed and dried sweatshirt, and headed for the coffee shop in the school store. Danny met me outside, passing me a peppermint hot chocolate. “So, did you get any sleep last night?” he asked.

“Um, I got maybe four hours,” I said, walking with him to class.

The next two days of school passed without incident. It wasn’t until after school Friday that anything interesting happened. And of course, it was at the expense of my brother. Jackson’s voice drew me near, and when I heard him, I felt my annoyance with him return. I rounded the corner just in time to see Jackson slam his fist into Scott’s locker and walk off. Realizing he was heading for the locker room, I took a shortcut, stepping into his path when he came out of the locker room. With a glare, I slapped him across the face. “That’s for thinking my brother would stoop low enough to take drugs,” I snapped, “He trained all last year and all summer to be this good. And I don’t care if you don’t like it; you should be happy your team has another good player to make your bullshit leadership look good.” Then I stormed away to find a place to sit for the tryout elimination game.

However much I tried to convince myself that Scott’s sudden skills were coming from his training, I knew it wasn’t true. Just the fact that my brother wasn’t broken from Jackson’s check made me realize that Derek needed to do something, and soon. The full moon was Friday. Scott’s first full moon…was the night of the party…and it was tonight. I groaned quietly and looked down at the articles I’d printed out in the library on the Hale house fire.

I looked up in time to see Scott score. Everyone else jumped up, and I called, “Yeah, Scott!” But I flinched when Coach yelled for Scott. I hated loud noises, and having hypersensitive hearing didn’t help at all. Danny thought that was why I was so quiet.

“You’re startin’ buddy; you made first line!” Coach declared, and everyone started clapping. Scott looked up at me, and I realized he was kind of in shock. He was bouncing and swaying.

“I guess that dream wasn’t so pathetically unrealistic,” I whispered, but I knew he heard me when the grin spread across his face. But now I was worried.

That night, when I got home from work, driven this time by Mom, I had a ton of emails from Stiles. When I saw the pages, and the picture of his computer chair, I realized why Scott was so shaken. “My god, no, Stiles, stop digging,” I breathed. I typed back a simple response of, “I know. Don’t push him. I’ll talk to him, but I’ve got a plan. Just let me deal with it.”

Then I dressed in black leggings, replaced my flats with heeled boots, and pulled my leather jacket over my long white shirt. “Mom, I’m going to meet a friend before the party, I’ll get a ride home with Stiles or Danny,” I peeked inside the living room to see her eating dinner in front of whatever TV show had caught her eye for tonight.

“Just remember your curfew!” she called, “love you!”

“I will, I love you too,” I replied, running out the door. I walked all the way to the coffee shop where Cora and I used to get ice cream. The black Camaro parked out front told me I was in the right place instantly, and I darted inside. Mrs. Daniels, the owner, waved to me from the bakery counter, and her husband pointed to a booth in the back corner.

There I found Derek, who was sipping a coffee and had another sitting on the table. I slid onto the bench across from him, and he nodded to the coffee. “The pack takes care-” he started.

“Of its own. I know. That’s what Cora always used to tell me,” I told him, smiling shyly. When I took a sip, I found a hot caramel swirl with skim milk. “You remember,” I realized, meeting his eyes with appreciation.

“You always loved caramel,” he pointed out. “My mom used to buy those caramel candies just for you,” he added.

“She did? I thought she bought them for Eric,” I replied, smiling fondly when I thought of his elder brother. “Look, Scott’s turning. The wound was gone on Wednesday. I was going to bring him to you, but we’ve got a bit of a problem,” I told him.

“What kind of problem?” he asked.

“There’s a party tonight. And he’s taking Allison. If Jackson doesn’t piss him off, she’ll raise his pulse easily enough,” I sighed, lowering my head without thinking.  
“Allison who?” he asked. When I didn’t answer, he reached across the table and caught my chin. “Ami, Allison who?” he repeated.

My eyes slid down, and I would have ducked my head if he didn’t have an iron grip on me. “Allison Argent,” I whispered. His hand tightened around my jaw, and I winced. “Derek, let go,” I hissed, trying to pull back. I could feel my jaw grinding together and looked up to his eyes. They were angry and sad and ashamed, but so far away. “Derek, snap out of it. You’re hurting me,” I managed to say, and then he yanked back like I’d burned him. I fell forward, my hand coming up to massage my jaw. “What do I do?” I asked.

“Come with me. Get me into the party and I’ll take care of Scott,” he requested. I nodded and looked up at the clock on the wall.

“We’ve got time. It doesn’t start for a little while and Scott’s not going right away,” I sat back, my hand dropping away from my jaw as I picked up my coffee.

“Next time you tell me something like that, make sure I’m not holding you,” Derek mused, reaching out to gently run a finger across my jaw. When I didn’t wince, I figured it wouldn’t bruise. “How about we go have a little fun before your brother interrupts his own date?” he offered, getting to his feet. He held out his hand, and I got up, taking it. “It’s been a long time since I took you anywhere,” he said as we walked out the front door.

“The last time was my tenth birthday, and I wanted to go see some movie with Cora, but Mr. McCall had just left and Melissa couldn’t afford it,” I remembered.

“So Mom made me take you, since I’d just gotten my license,” he added.

“And I remember thinking how we were gonna get pulled over because you werewolves like to drive fast,” I teased, bumping him with my shoulder.

“Who taught you to drive?” he asked, nudging me back.

“Sheriff Stilinski and Danny’s mom,” I told him.

“Guess I’ll have to teach you how to drive properly,” he grinned down at me and opened the passenger door for me.

“You’d actually let me drive your car?” I asked, shocked, when he started said Camaro.

“You can’t be that bad of a driver,” he scoffed.

“I’m better than you were when you started,” I laughed as we sped off.

“Hey, I’m a good driver,” he poked me in the ribs and I let out a peal of laughter. Derek chuckled and soon we were pulling up to Lydia’s house. “Come on, Pixie, let’s see if you can dance,” he dared me.

“You know I can dance,” I replied, taking his offered hand when he opened my door, “Laura taught me everything Mom taught her.”

As we were walking up, he leaned over and whispered, “I like the leather jacket.”

“I thought you would,” I murmured.

Then Lydia let us in, giving Derek an appreciative look over as she stepped aside. “I approve,” she whispered to me, but I knew Derek heard her.

I grinned at her and shook my head. “Old friend,” I whispered back.

When we walked in, there were only a few people dancing, and I knew it be a little while before everyone got out of work and got over here. “Hey, Lydia, can you play something off my playlist?” I asked.

“Sure. Which song?” she asked.

“Better Than You,” I requested. Derek gave me a look, and I grinned up at him. I shed my jacket, passing it off to one of Lydia’s friends and turned my back on him. 

"What are you doing?" he asked. 

"You can't just stand in the corner and look like a serial killer until Scott gets here, Derek. Blend in," I suggested. He sighed, but when the music started, he took my hand and whipped me around. I spun past him, kicking up one leg, and people already there came over to watch. He spun me up against his chest then did a very un-Derek thing; he reached out and pulled my hair free of its ponytail before running his hand through it. And we danced.

As we danced, I was aware of people around us taking pictures, and Lydia watched with a proud smirk on her face. My complete trust in Derek was pretty clear if our dancing was anything to do by, because I knew he wouldn’t let me fall. It was easy to let him spin me, dip me, even lift me. I had forgotten how much I loved to dance like this. I was good at it, having once taken contemporary dance lessons along with gymnastics.

We ended with one of his arms coming across my chest so his hand rested on my neck, the other wrapped around my waist. I had my back pressed to his chest, and I was reaching up, my hands on either side of his face. We’d drawn the attention of everyone there, and they all clapped for us. When he led my over to the fire pit, he grinned down at me. “Been a long time, huh, pixie?” he teased.

“Six years, wolf-boy,” I replied.

He smirked down at me, and I thought he was going to say something, but then his head jerked up. “Scott’s here,” he whispered. “Go,” he ordered, nodding to Danny and Jackson.

“Thanks for the dance,” I murmured before I hugged him quickly and moved away. Danny helped me back into my jacket, and Jackson passed me a drink. I took one whiff of it and handed it back. “Good try, Jackson,” I said, sarcasm rolling off my tongue. I saw Scott and Allison come in, and Scott saw Derek immediately. Scott looked away for a minute and Derek moved.

A few minutes later Scott looked like he was going to keel over. I followed Allison as he fled, but Stiles stopped me. “How did you know?” he asked.

“I’ll explain later, I promise. Right now, I have to go after Scott,” I sighed. He nodded and I raced down the front steps in time to reach Allison as Derek introduced himself. “Derek, can you take me home?” I asked him, hoping this was his plan.

“Of course, Pixie,” he replied, flashing me a smile. “Would you like a ride too, Allison?” he offered. The other girl sighed and nodded, and I climbed into the backseat of the Camaro. I saw Derek turn on the backseat heat controls, and I bumped it up enough that Allison had to take off her jacket. I remembered a story Laura had told me once of a new wolf being most dependent on its sense of smell, and I figured the jacket would be the easiest way to leave a scent marker for Scott.

Then Derek got her talking, and when he dropped her off, she got out smiling. With her jacket left behind on the seat.

“Go easy on him,” I ordered, “he’ll be confused.” He rolled his eyes at me and I leaned over to kiss his cheek. “Thanks for the dance, big brother,” I teased, getting out.

“Any time, Pixie,” he replied, and then he sped off into the darkness.


	2. Second Chance at First Line

Scott spent most of Saturday sleeping off the full moon, and Sunday escaped to Stiles’ house. I worked both days, and Derek found me in the store on Saturday morning to tell me about the hunters.

_‘Stay away from my house around the full moon, ok? They’ll be out in force,’ he told me. I’d nodded, allowed him a sip of my hot chocolate and watched him leave._

On Monday, everything seemed too calm, like a storm was brewing, and it all came down at practice. Jackson took a long stick, making him defense, and I knew I had to watch. The blonde slammed kid after kid back, and Coach Flintstock only egged on the other kids. Scott was so clearly distracted, and I moved down to the line to talk to Stiles.

“What happened?” I demanded.

“You know about the hunters, right?” he asked, watching Scott carefully. When I nodded, he continued, “Yeah, well the one that shot Scott is Allison’s father.”

“Damn,” I growled and moved back up to the bleachers. Coach would make both of us run if he caught me talking to Stiles. And he wouldn’t care about the fact that I was in heels and a skirt. He’d make me take my shoes off and run anyway. And then Jackson slammed Scott to the ground. Scott got up slowly, holding his arm, and doubled over. Concentrating, I saw the signs. I pulled out my phone and sent Derek a text to come. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to stop Scott if he shifted on the field.

“McCall’s gonna do it again!” Coach told the team, but I heard the barb aimed at my brother. He took his place at the front of the attacking line, drawing a deep breath as he set his shoulders.

Scott charged. He lowered his shoulder and slammed Jackson back, and I winced. Then Scott grabbed at his head and fell to his knees. “Shit!” I gasped, running down the bleachers as Stiles grabbed Scott. The team gathered around Jackson, but I knew where the real concern was. Stiles looked up at me, panic clear on his face, and I motioned towards the locker room. As Stiles and Scott jogged passed him, my attention was drawn to the fact that Derek was there, standing at the edge of the field.

I ran passed him, hurrying after Scott, but he caught me outside the locker room. “Do something!” I cried. “Stop him!”

“Stiles needs to see how dangerous Scott is. They both need to understand that Scott can’t play until he knows how to control this.”

“Get away from me!” Scott roared, and I tried to pull free from Derek. I could hear the growls and the snarls and the crashes of Stiles hitting lockers.

“Derek!” I pleaded.

“He hasn’t touched him yet,” he assured me, listening easily. Then there was a roar, and a weird sound and distressed snarls. “Stiles has it under control,” he told me, and then said boy was there, clutching the fire extinguisher.

“Stiles,” Scott wheezed, making both Stiles and I lean around the door frame. “What happened?” Scott asked.

Stiles sighed, relieved, and stepped into the locker room, dropping the extinguisher. He pulled off his gloves throwing one aside, and said, “You tried to kill me. It’s like I told you before, it’s the anger, it’s your pulse rising. It’s a trigger.”

“But that’s lacrosse,” Scott protested.

“It doesn’t matter,” I told him, loosening Derek’s hold on me enough to lean around the doorway.

“It’s a pretty violent game if you hadn’t noticed,” Scott said.

“Well, it’s gonna end up a lot more violent if you end up killing someone on the field. You can’t play Saturday, you’re gonna have to get out of the game,” Stiles replied.

“But I’m first line,” Scott reminded him.

“Not anymore,” Stiles told him sadly.

“He’s right, Scott. It’s too dangerous. What if you really hurt someone?” I asked, letting Derek pull me away from the locker room.

**~~*~~**

When Scott got home a few minutes after Derek dropped me off, I knew he was still off. Once he flopped onto his bed, I joined him, resting my head on his back. Mom came in a minute later saying, “Hey, late shift again for me. But I am taking Saturday off to see your first game.”

“No, Mom you can’t,” Scott protested. I sat up, bracing my weight on my elbows as I looked at her sadly.

“I can, and I will. Come on, one shift isn’t gonna break us. At least, not completely,” Mom sighed.

“I’ll see if I can work overtime on Sunday,” I offered, “Mr. Roberts usually has book work I can do.”

“Hey what’s wrong with your eyes?” she asked, sounding both concerned and possibly suspicious. Scott instantly sat up, probably thinking they were yellow, and I leaned over his shoulder to see. But I relaxed back onto the bed when I saw that they were normal. “You look like you haven’t slept in days,” Mom told him.

“Oh, it’s nothing, I’m just stressed,” Scott tried to assure her.

“Jut stress. Nothin’ else,” Mom pressed.

“Homework,” Scott muttered.

“I mean, it’s not like you’re on drugs or anything, right?” she asked.

“Right now?” Scott checked. I groaned at his stupidity and dropped my face into his comforter.

“Right now? I’m sorry, what do you mean right now. Have you ever taken drugs?” Mom demanded.

“Have you?” Scott asked. That shut her up pretty fast and I got up to follow her out.

“Get some sleep,” she suggested, walking out. Down stairs, where I started making grilled cheese sandwiches, she asked, “He’s not on drugs, right?”

“No, neither of us is. He’s not kidding about homework, and Coach pushes him really hard, and I don’t think my waking him up with nightmares is helping much,” I informed her. She kissed my temple before she left, offering me a sympathetic smile. When dinner was done, I called Scott down, and watched him scarf down two entire sandwiches and half of mine. “Here,” I called, throwing him an apple as he left.

When I walked up the stairs to my room to get in the shower, I heard Stiles say that Jackson had a separated shoulder. I guessed they were using video chat, since speaker phone had a crappy sound quality. I tuned out their talking with my earphones, but I couldn’t ignore the sound of something slamming into the wall between our rooms. Jumping up, I ran through the hallway to peak in.

“What are you talking about?” Scott demanded, his voice slightly muffled and slurred. Looking in I found that to my complete shock Derek had Scott pinned against the wall. I listened to Derek, heard him berating Scott, and retreated to my room.

Sinking onto my bed, I pulled my feet up as I stared out the window at the waning moon. After a minute, I could feel his eyes boring into my back, and I leaned forward. I opened the window and curled up on my side, turning my back on Derek. “Ami,” he said quietly. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have very long to teach him. To the Argents, he’s the main target until he learns control.”

“You mean until he’s in control. They’ll hunt him no matter what if they find out the Alpha can compel him,” I replied.

It was the hand on my shoulder that made me roll over, trying to mask my wince. “I know,” Derek sighed, standing over me. “I’m so sorry, Ami. I don’t know what I’m doing,” he said, and then the look in his eyes changed. “You’re in pain,” he observed. I glanced down at his hand, and he pulled his hand back. Only to yank my jacket and shirt aside, revealing the square of white bandages on the back of my shoulder. “What happened?” he demanded his voice a low growl I recognized.

“It was my fault, Derek. Scott closed his window Friday night, and I went in and opened it. He was in the bathroom, trying to relax, so I locked the door to the bathroom from inside my room. Stiles wasn’t supposed to show up, but he did, and Scott slammed the door shut on him. Then Stiles told him about you driving Allison, and went straight for the window. I didn’t get out of the way fast enough,” I explained, sitting up.

“Let me see,” he ordered. I shed my jacket and pulled off my shirt, leaving me in a black cami that exposed the entire bandage. Pushing my hair out of the way, he peeled it away and I hissed in pain. “Did you clean them?” he asked. Afraid that if I spoke my voice would crack in pain, I nodded. “They still look fresh,” he murmured.

I knew that the four jagged lines were still red and open, but I thought they’d stopped bleeding. “Acting like there’s nothing wrong hurts enough to keep them from healing,” I replied, my nails digging into my palms. I felt some of the pain leave my body and turned on him with a protest, “You’re not supposed to do that to me.”

“It’s not serious,” he assured me, and I let him replace the bandage. Then he leaned down to kiss the top of my head and was gone. I closed the window behind him, basking in the moonlight for a minute before crawling into bed.

**~~*~~**

Friday came way faster than I thought it would, but it was Saturday I was dreading. In the Algebra 2 class I shared with Scott and Lydia, I breathed instructions to Scott to help him solve the problem on the board; I knew he could hear me, even though I could barely hear myself. “Leave him be, Lydia. Jackson wouldn’t have gotten hurt if he wasn’t trying to show Scott up,” I muttered to her, glaring at her as she sat down beside me.

When I walked out of my French class, I had to move aside for Lydia and some lacrosse kid I didn’t know the name of and saw Allison pass me. “Allison!” Scott called, but she was walking away.

“I really have to go,” she replied, looking over her shoulder. Her black jacket was slung over her arm, and I realized Scott knew Derek had returned it. I watched as Scott’s shoulders rose and his jaw clenched, but he didn’t shift. I hurried over and caught his arm, forcibly dragging him with me to our next class.

In the hallway after school, Jackson and Danny stole me away from Allison, and I took Danny’s other jersey from him with a grin. “Convince Lydia to wear yours, yet, Jackson?” I teased. He glared at me and I grinned up at him. He suddenly noticed something, and I flinched back when he reached for my shoulder. “Don’t,” I hissed at him, turning away.

“What happened?” he demanded.

“I went to see Scott at the clinic and one of the dogs bit me. It’s nothing serious, it just hurts,” I told him. He nodded, though I knew he didn’t completely believe me, and Danny wrapped his arm around my waist.

“So, Pixie girl, who was that tall, dark, handsome dancer?” he asked, and I realized I’d been so busy I hadn’t gotten to tell him about my brother being back.

“Do you remember Cora Hale?” I replied.

“Of course; she was your Jackson,” he assured me.

“Do you remember how close I was to the rest of the family?” I went on, walking with him towards the parking lot.

“I remember that Mrs. Hale came to your competitions even when Melissa couldn’t, and Laura used to teach you to dance, and Eric used to pick you up from school with Cora,” he told me.

“Do you remember Derek? He was older than Cora, but younger than Laura,” I hoped my tone would tell him, and of course, him being Danny, he figured it out.

“That was Derek Hale?” he exclaimed, and I hushed him instantly.

“My god, Danny, quiet. Yes, that was Derek; yes, he’s hot; yes, he’s staying for awhile; no, he’s not my boyfriend; no, I don’t have a crush on him,” I whispered as we crossed the parking lot.

“Damn, you know me too well,” he sighed.

“I don’t care even if you are gay, I’m not talking boys with you,” I laughed, sliding into the passenger seat of his dark blue Mazda. He shook his head at me and I glanced down at my phone _._

_“Heard that,”_ a text message from Derek told me. I looked around the parking lot, but I couldn’t see him anywhere. _“So, what am I if I’m not a boyfriend or crush?”_ came the next message.

_“What are you doing here now? You’re my brother, wise-ass,”_ I replied.

“ _Returning Allison’s jacket. I sure do a better job of it than your actual brother,”_ he said.

“ _Leave him alone. It’s not his fault he got bit. He’s got a lot on his plate right now,”_ I reminded him. “Where are we going anyway?” I asked Danny.

“The bakery Josh always goes to after school,” he replied.

“I finally get to meet him?” I asked, grinning over at him.

“He insisted,” the tall boy informed me. I giggled and leaned over to play with the radio, only to have my hand swatted away. “I like this song,” Danny said.

My phone buzzed in my hand and I looked down, expecting to see Derek’s teasing response. Instead, I read, “ _Go home right now. Your brother just came by my place, and he’s not happy. He saw the place where I buried Laura.”_ I groaned and sat back angrily. “You can’t come, can you?” Danny asked, looking over at my face.

“No. My brother’s done something unusually stupid,” I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from slamming my phone down on the dash board. Danny nodded and headed for my house. When he pulled up in the driveway, I saw Stiles’ Jeep and leaned over to kiss his cheek. “Wish me luck,” I sighed.

“Call me tonight, okay, Pixie?” he requested.

“You got it, Danny-boy,” I smiled at him, loving him even more for not being upset with me, and darted up the walkway to the house. I stormed up the stairs and waited outside Scott’s room.

“But when we do know, your dad nails Derek for the murder, and you help me figure out how to play lacrosse without changing. Because there’s no way I’m not playing that game,” Scott said. They came out of the bedroom, but froze in place when they found me blocking the stairs.

“Derek Hale is not a murderer,” I snapped at them. Stiles flinched, but Scott was angry, and stubborn.

“I smelled the blood. I saw the burial spot,” he growled at me.

“And did you even think about the fact that the BURNED DOWN, ABANDONED HOUSE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WOODS WOULD MAKE THE PERFECT PLACE TO HIDE A BODY?” I snarled. Scott’s hands clenched at his side, and I glared at him. But I knew I couldn’t tell him that the girl was Derek’s sister. I had no way to prove it. And I had way to prove that it was the Alpha who’d killed her.

Stiles sighed and lifted me over his shoulder, carrying me down the stairs as Scott followed. I didn’t bother to fight; I couldn’t make him out me down with any amount of yelling at him or pounding on his back. He’d just ignore me and I’d still end up in the back seat of the Jeep.

But I drew the line at going in the hospital. I hated the building with a passion, another thing I’d picked up from Cora. Closed in, with lots of people and suffering, in a too sterile building; yeah, no thanks.

When Scott and Stiles came out a little while later, Scott was angry and convinced. Stiles headed for our house, and I grabbed Scott by the shoulder. “You can’t do this. We have to trespass to get up there, and even if the police believe you, how do explain how you found her, how you knew it was the same girl, any of it?” I asked. “You can’t, not without exposing yourself or making yourself look crazy.”

“I don’t care, Ami. Derek has to pay for what he’s done. And this will keep him away from us,” Scott declared. I shook my head, but I knew Scott didn’t remember that Derek was just as much my older brother as he was. I doubted he even remembered my friendship to Cora.

When Stiles and Scott packed up the gear they thought they’d need, I got out of the car and went inside. I wasn’t helping them dig up the body of the girl who’d been my older sister.

Sitting on my bed in the growing moonlight, I messaged Derek, _“Leave the house now. Scott knows about the body and he’s coming to dig up the half at the house. I couldn’t stop him. He doesn’t know it’s your sister. You have to tell him about the Alpha. He’s going to have you arrested.”_

When Stiles came running into the house, without Scott, I knew something had gone wrong. “What did you do?” I snapped, getting to my feet. They’d been gone all night.

“Um, I might have made Scott shift by exposing him to Wolfsbane,” he replied, taking in the fact that I was wearing Danny’s jersey over black leggings and maroon Toms. “You ever going to wear Scott’s jersey?” he asked curiously.

“Once he can play safely, sure,” I retorted. “But he’s probably giving it to Allison,” I added on second thought. “Go home, Stiles. Get ready for the game. I’ll find him,” I said, pushing him out of my room. I had to push him all the way out the door, but he finally gave in and left.

“Where the hell did they find Wolfsbane?” I asked myself softly, pulling my leather jacket on over the jersey. Grabbing my bag, I was about the run out the door when it opened to reveal Scott. “Are you okay?” I asked.

“Yeah, I’m good,” he grinned down at me and hurried up the stairs. Shaking my head, I dropped down on the couch to wait for Mom.

By the time she got home from the shift she’d taken to avoid working tonight, I’d texted Stiles that Scott was fine, and Scott was gone. I’d changed into black jeans and boots, since it’d gotten colder than I’d expected, and swapped my leather jacket for a Northface. My hair tumbled around my shoulders in loose curls, and I was finishing my makeup while Mom changed out of her scrubs. “Is that Danny’s jersey, Ami?” she asked when she came downstairs.

“Like he’d let me wear anyone else’s,” I replied, smiling at her. It was nice to see her in normal clothes, looking like a normal mom. To my surprise, she let me drive over to school, and we chatted about my classes and friends.

“Any boys catch your eye yet?” she asked. I sputtered, shocked that she’d asked so directly, and shook my head. “One will come eventually,” she assured me, and I nodded mutely. I figured out how excited she was when she looped her arm through mine as we walked to the field, and I was glad to spend some time with her. After she’d adopted me at the age of ten, Mr. McCall had left only a month later, and she’d been forced into working all the time to pay for everything. It had been a long time since I’d had some mother-daughter time.

When we got to the bleachers, Mom waved to Scott, and I grinned at him. But I was still worried, mostly because Scott didn’t have any kind of anchor against his anger to keep him in control. I was going to have to count on his conscience and his super hearing to keep him calm. But I forgot about Scott’s temper for a minute when Jackson checked Scott so he could get the ball and scored. “Isn’t that your friend Jackson?” Mom asked me quietly as the Beacon Hills fans jumped up, cheering.

“Right now, he’s not my friend,” I told her, narrowing my eyes as I watched Scott and Jackson. Mom got her feet, clapping reluctantly. I didn’t even bother to stand, since I was now quite mad at the blonde. Apparently I needed to slap him harder. Then I saw something in the stands catch Scott’s eye, and looked over to see Lydia and Allison holding up a sign for Jackson. I groaned and murmured, “oh no, here we go.”

Jackson gathered everyone but Scott in the middle of the field, and I saw Danny arguing with him. But Jackson pushed, and Danny gave in with a sigh before returning to the goal. “Derek, where are you?” I asked softly when I realized Scott was fighting the shift as he bent over. The ref stopped, but took Scott’s nod for granted and walked on, thankfully. The MFH kid behind Scott backed up a step, and I realized I needed to help. “Scott, listen to me. Listen to my voice. Everything is okay. Just focus on winning the game,” I said. Thankfully, Mom wasn’t listening, and it seemed to work for a minute.

Until Allison got up with another sign for Jackson. “Scott, she likes you, not Jackson. Lydia’s just pushing your buttons. You’re okay,” I spoke quickly, but Scott flicked his hand on his stick, and I knew he’d heard me. Mom gripped my shoulder from where she stood beside me and I watched in horrified fascination as Scott leaped off the MFH player to grab the ball. He ran for the net, dodging other defenders like they were hardly moving. Then he scored, and I jumped up, cheering for my brother. But I was worried. He wasn’t in control at all, and I’d seen Mr. Argent in the stands with Allison and Lydia.

“Oh, Scott, no. Focus!” I hissed when the MFH defender actually willingly passed to him. “Easy, easy. Breathe. Relax,” I kept talking when I realized how much danger everyone on and off the field was in. Derek wasn’t here, and I could only keep speaking. But when I saw the hole torn straight through the goalie’s cross, I swore, “Damn it, Scott, listen to me!” Mom cheered, astonished, and I tried to smile at her. Then Scott got the ball again, and the defenders just backed away from him.

They made a circle around him, and when I saw the time on the clock, I hissed, “Scott, they aren’t prey. They’re defending their goal.” But that went out the window when they charged him from all sides. “Shoot!” I cried, springing to my feet, and he did. The goalie made a hopeless swipe at the ball, and I laughed, hugging my mom excitedly. I joined the rest of the fans as they ran down onto the field, and felt myself being picked up from behind.

“Danny!” I admonished, laughing. He spun me around, and then set me back on the ground as I stretched up to hug him. I didn’t mind the smell of sweaty boys after living with Scott and usually Stiles too. Danny grinned at me, his helmet gone, then joined his teammates in their celebration.

Then I saw Stiles on the bench, and Scott running towards the school. Allison was going after my brother, and I swore. The Sheriff was on the phone as I ran over to Stiles, but when he saw me, the teen jumped up. “Allison just went after Scott!” I told him.

“Hold on,” he whispered, gesturing to his dad.

“Mr. Stilinski, everything ok?” I asked when the Sheriff got off the phone.

“Yeah, just the medical examiner’s findings from the body the boys found. Guess you were wrong, Stiles. Derek wasn’t the killer. It was an animal that killed her,” the Sheriff replied.

“Well, that’s good. Does that mean you’ll release him?” I asked. The sheriff nodded gravely, and moved away to make that call.

“Shit. Come on,” Stiles took my hand and ran for the locker room, and I found I could actually keep up. We ran through the hallway, but skidded to halt in front of the locker room door. Scott’s helmet was lying on the floor, and I bent down to retrieve it as Stiles went in. I followed, only for him to grab me before I went into the shower area. He jerked his head in the direction I’d wanted to go, and I saw Scott and Allison. Making out.

Blanching, I pulled back and gathered Scott’s dropped glove. I heard Allison say, “Stiles,” as she walked out and smothered a giggle.

“Hey, yeah,” Stiles replied, and then I actually laughed softly. He sounded so awkward.

Scott came out with a goofy grin on his face, and I laughed at him. “Oh, Scott, you’re so whipped,” I teased.

“I kissed her,” Scott said. He sounded like he was in la-la land.

“We saw,” Stiles and I chorused.

“She kissed me,” Scott went on.

“Saw that too,” we told him.

“It’s pretty good, huh?” Stiles asked. I whacked him with Scott’s glove, but laughed at the look on Scott’s face.

“I don’t know how, but I controlled it. I pulled it back. Maybe I can do this. Maybe it’s not that bad,” Scott said.

“Oh, Scott,” I sighed sadly. He had no idea about the Alpha controlling him.

Then Stiles tried to avoid ruining Scott’s mood. “We’ll talk later, then,” he decided, slapping Scott’s shoulder. I stepped aside to let him walk away, nodding appreciatively.

Scott grabbed his jersey, stopping him. He knew something was wrong. “What?” he asked gently.

“The uh medical examiner looked at the other half of the body we found,” Stiles tried to stop the conversation, but now Scott was interested.

“And?” my brother pushed.

“Well, I’ll keep it simple. Medical examiner determines killer of girl to be animal, not human. Derek’s human, not animal; Derek not killer; Derek let out of jail,” Stiles told him.

“Are you kidding?” Scott replied.

Stiles glanced at me, then dropped the bomb, “No, and here’s a bigger kick in the ass. My dad ID’ed the dead girl, both halves. Her name was Laura Hale.”

“Hale?” Scott gasped. I whimpered, clutching Scott’s glove to my chest. Stiles words had a completely different meaning to me than they did to Scott. Scott and Stiles had no idea about the real relationship I’d had with the Hales, since I’d never told them, and Stiles had just confirmed that my older sister was really dead.

“Derek’s sister,” Stiles sighed.

I passed Scott his glove, seeing the horrified look on his face, but I didn’t stay. I needed to leave before my tears came. I ran back out into the parking lot, and found Danny waiting for me. He was talking with my mom, and I wormed my way into his arms. “You okay?” Mom asked me, and I nodded.

Danny smiled down at me, and saw how close I was to tears. “I’ll bring her home before midnight, Melissa, I promise,” he told her, and ushered me into the car. I saw Scott getting into Mom’s car, and Stiles throwing his gear in the Jeep, but I still couldn’t see Derek anywhere.

When we got to Danny’s house, he carried me into the house, since I barely recognized that we weren’t at the school anymore. He made me a cup of hot chocolate and brought me up to his room. There, he set me down on the bed and covered me in a blanket. Then he jumped in the shower, and I stared at the wall, my mind reeling.

Danny’s phone went off, and I recognized Jackson’s ringtone. I picked it up and managed a choked, “Jackson?”

“Pixie? Are you guys coming?” the blonde’s voice greeted me.

“I don’t…I can’t…” I tried to respond, but only succeeded in breaking down.

“What happened, Ami?” Jackson asked.

“She’s dead, Jackson,” I cried, and as I said the words, the reality hit me.

“Who’s dead, Aim?” he pressed.

“Laura! My Laura,” I sobbed, pulling my legs up to my chest.

Warm arms came around me from behind, and I recognized Danny’s scented shampoo and body wash. He took the phone from my hand, and said, “We aren’t coming, Jackson. She just found out from the Sheriff. Remember, Laura and Derek weren’t there during the fire. Ami’s been hoping Laura would come home all these years, and now she’s dead.” There was a pause as Jackson spoke, and I turned into Danny’s chest, my tears instantly leaving wet marks on his blue tee. “I don’t know, Jackson. She might not like that. You weren’t exactly nice to her brother during the game,” Danny protested.

“Don’t care,” I murmured through my tears.

I didn’t hear much more until Danny put the phone down and whispered, “He’s on his way.” Then he sat down on the bed beside me and pulled me up into his arms. I cried for a long time, and when Jackson got there, I ended up squished between them on the bed.

When I woke the next morning alone in Danny’s bed, I realized my mom was probably freaking out. I got up to find that I wasn’t in my own clothes. A pair of Danny’s flannel pajama pants had replaced my jeans, and I wore one of his tank tops over my cami. My stuff was sitting on his desk, my boots by the door. I glanced in the mirror and stopped, appalled. The skin around my eyes was red and raw, my eyes bloodshot and empty. Knots had formed in my hair, so I grabbed the brush Danny kept for me on his dresser. It took a few minutes, but I managed to untangle it. It ended up in a messy bun, but there was nothing I could do about my eyes, or the paleness of the rest of my face. My lips were thin and white, and even when I bit them a few times, they stayed that way.

I finally gave up on my appearance and headed downstairs. I found Danny and Jackson; both dressed the same way as me, in the living room. Mrs. Mahealani jumped up when she saw me and wrapped me in the tightest hug she could manage. “I made you peppermint hot chocolate, sweetie,” she told me.

“Thanks, Mrs. Mahealani,” I smiled at her, and leaned over the back of the couch to hug Danny when she left. Jackson reached up and pulled me over the back of the couch with ease, and I ended up laying across their laps.

“Mom called Melissa,” Danny assured me, and I nodded into his chest, “you can stay all day if you want.”

“Can I? No one is at home and I don’t want to be alone,” I murmured.

“So much for McCall being a good brother,” Jackson sneered.

I threw a pillow at him, but he caught it easily enough. “Leave Scott alone, Jackson,” I protested. But my heart wasn’t in it. I knew better than to blame Scott for not being there, since he was dealing with being a werewolf now, but I couldn’t help but feel alone. Scott was too busy trying to learn, Stiles was too busy researching werewolves, Derek was too busy trying to help, and Scott wasn’t letting him, Lydia was too busy trying to make Jackson jealous while using Allison to piss off Scott, and Jackson was too busy trying to figure out Scott’s secret.

“So it’s true?” Danny asked. I nodded and sat up, moving off the couch to curl up in one of the recliners.

“We’ve had some problems come up and Scott is having a hard time with them,” I sighed.

“But you’re okay,” Jackson reminded me.

“Yeah, because I already knew! I’ve already dealt with it!” I exclaimed. “They weren’t problems for me. I grew up with it in foster care, I was used to it. It wasn’t a big deal to me, but it’s brand new to Scott, and school just started, and he made first line,” I explained, then turned to Jackson and snapped, “And, you by the way, need to grow up and get over the fact that he’s good without using drugs. I don’t care if you don’t like him, be a team player and pass him the freaking ball.”

Then I looked over at Danny’s face and realized I’d said something that startled him. “What? What did I say?” I asked.

“That was the first time you mentioned your foster care,” Danny told me softly. “We thought you’d bounced around, had it really rough, that was why you never talked about it.”

“Wait you don’t know?” I realized.

“Know what?” Jackson asked.

“I grew up in foster care here in Beacon Hills. I was only in one foster house until Melissa adopted me when I was ten. You knew my foster sister,” I told them.

“We do?” Danny asked.

“Yeah, you did. Cora wasn’t just my best friend. She was my foster sister,” I replied.

“Wait, so the guy you were dancing with at the party was your brother?” Jackson realized.

I looked back and forth between them, seeing that they really didn’t know, and sighed. Then I said, “Yeah, Derek’s my brother just as much as Scott. My foster family was the Hales.”


End file.
